Hannah Gates

Working for River Island as a Junior Retoucher involves working as part of a team of Retouchers and Artworkers in order to produce high quality work consistently for e-commerce. All of the work produced must be of the same high standard to display continuity, hence showcasing my keen eye for detail. In this role I have dealt with large volumes of work to be completed within tight timeframes and to very specific deadlines, whilst still maintaining high quality outcomes. This has helped to improve my timekeeping ability and shows my efficiency within the workplace. I have also been able to follow instructions consistently throughout my time at River Island, retouching each image as requested so as to enhance the image to the best of my abilities. This also means working alongside a wider team, including the Photographic Studio. This ensures that the same vision is carried out throughout the production process. Working as a team has also improved my ability to work alongside other individuals. The Retouch team works as a tight knit community to help each other in busier times to ensure all work gets completed within the deadlines set and to a high standard. The team also works alongside the Studio and other departments of River Island to raise issues or concerns as quickly as possible to ensure seamless coordination within our organisation. I have learnt a plethora of different skills during my time at River Island, including but not limited to:

- Using Frequency Separation to remove blemishes, creases, wrinkles, etc. and to even tones.

- Utilising Photoshop actions to enhance my work and to make the process more time efficient.

- Continuously using Photoshop shortcuts to make my editing more time efficient.

- Working with an Apple Mac (I previously used PC/Windows and am now proficient in both systems).

- Working as part of a team to achieve excellent communication with a wider organisation, further improving our harmony as a collective.

Built from scratch, utilising keen interest in photography, art and the skills learned throughout education. All aspects of the business are managed solely, with relevant documents and insurances being enforced and maintained, including legal documents when conducting a photoshoot for clientele and organising documents to file artwork orders efficiently. Professionalism and organisational prowess have been remarked upon during my time in this role, as well as enthusiasm and dedication to my work.

Working as a Digital Retoucher at Redfits Ltd involves being in charge of editing all photos ready for listing on Amazon and/or eBay. This means that the images must be of a high standard and express the same standard consistently throughout, therefore conveying my exceptional eye for detail. Colour corrections, lighting adjustments, cropping and minor to extensive cleaning of images have been most frequently conducted in my work; I have also worked more creatively with stylized images and superimposing into scenes. Throughout my time at Redfits Ltd, I have efficiently created a range of engaging and high quality images, elaborating upon my skills as required to keep up with trend driven content. I have significantly improved my ability to work to tight deadlines and under pressure, as well as both individually and as part of a creative team. As well as retouching images, I have also helped intermittently in the photographic studio, so have an extensive knowledge of preparing and maintaining photography equipment for present and future shoots. Throughout my time at Redfits, I have progressed in my role as Retoucher and am now working alongside a Senior Designer with work involving Adobe Illustrator (including constructing templates for Amazon and eBay listings, barcode labels and designing products along with their supporting documents, for example instruction manuals). This has helped to further enhance my communication skills also, as well as increasing my involvement with server and file structures.